Senate Votes to Overturn Obama-Era OSHA Rule

On March 23rd, the Senate along with the House voted to overturn OSHA's final ruling that addressed employers' obligation to make and maintain accurate records of work-related injury and illness data. With a 50-48 vote, the Senate passed a joint resolution disapproving the dubbed "Volks" rule, which OSHA issued in the final days of the Obama Administration.

Previously, employers have been mandated to record and also maintain work-related injuries and illness data for up to five years - but could only be cited for violations within six months of the injury or illness.

On December 19, the guidelines were extended when OSHA published the Volks rule - allowing citations to be issued up to five and a half years after a violation has occurred. This ruling was caused by a legal case involving Volks Constructors. Some claimed it would allow OSHA to further enforce accurate recordkeeping while others felt it would burden employers without a proven increase in safety.

Now, employers still need to maintain logs for five years, but anything prior to six months before the current date is no longer fair game for OSHA to cite on.

This legislation now heads to President Trump, who is expected to sign it.